In real life, you care about other people, but at the end of the day you're like, "I'm acting upon whatever it is that I want or need."

When you're playing something, hopefully, if you're doing your best, you're advocating for your character and you're not trying to think too much.

Oftentimes the shows that don't work help you get it right.

For me, the goal wasn't to turn the stand-up special on its head, but to do what I do specifically, and hopefully that reads as something new.

It was sort of in the jam-band era and it was at the Capitol Theatre in Port Chester [New York], right where I grew up. I actually went back there a couple years ago when I was on tour for Kroll Show. I performed at that theater, which was really cool to go back to the first place I'd gone to a concert.

Music was not a big deal to me when I was in middle school. And then I slowly became a big jazz fan. Even more than concerts, a lot of my high school time was spent going to jazz clubs in the city.

My friends and family always thought I was pretty funny, but I don't know if they thought I was get-my-own-show funny.